Review: FEARLESS is one damn fine Kung Fu film. In fact, it sits proud alongside Jet Li’s most memorable roles as Wong Fei Hung and Fong Sai Yuk. The film compliments polished, fluid and often brutal kung fu action with beautiful, breezy, artistic direction in its more serene moments. Certainly, if Fearless is an apology from Ronny Yu for the dreadful BRIDE OF CHUCKY - apology accepted.

The plot itself is typical of the classic kung fu films. It’s a simplistic story, but with a strong, universal message. However, where most martial art movies simply have the protagonist take revenge on the bad guy with a simple fight to the death, FEARLESS examines the price paid for that revenge. There is a classic Bruce Lee movie that does the same thing, and it’s closely related to Jet Li’s new triumph. Somebody call George Lucas and tell him to start taking notes, because FEARLESS works wonderfully as a prequel to FIST OF FURY.

FIST OF FURY (and of course, Li’s own remake Fist of Legend) began with the mysterious death of Huo Yuan Jia (Fok Yun Gap). Chen Jun, a fictional student of the master, seeks revenge, but ultimately pays dearly for it. According to FEARLESS, his master travelled a similar journey, and without giving too much away, there are definite similarities in the way the characters develop from vengeful and arrogant fighting machines to honourable men willing to pay any price for their beliefs.

Jet Li is at his very best as a fighter, but also proves yet again that he is a fine actor. At times his cheeky grin charms the audience, but in the films darker moments, there is a fury in his eyes that suggests an intensity of screen presence to rival even Bruce Lee. Sometimes, the slightest twitch of an eyelid suggests several pages of unspoken dialogue. If Jet Li carries out the unthinkable and switches to purely dramatic roles, it’s a distinct possibility that he could succeed.

FEARLESS is not without its flaws. The pacing is a little uneven, and after a mind-blowing first act, the movie slows down to a crawl during the contemplative middle section, before rushing through a slightly underplayed final battle. This seems strange, especially as the film gives us half of the final battle at the beginning of the film. Maybe this is a result of the last minute cuts made by Ronny Yu, as 40 minutes were reputedly removed from the movie, including an entire subplot featuring Michelle Yeoh.

While most Hong Kong action films these days are half-witted teen movies starring pop starlets and pouting pretty-boys, it’s wonderful to be able to enjoy a quality kung fu film from the territory, produced by genuine HK movie legends. It’s a poignant, thoughtful, heart-warming adrenaline-pumper of a film that belongs amongst Jet Li’s finest roles…..

I didn’t want to have to decide. It’s like choosing a favourite son, but I’ve made my mind up, and I’m going to spark a little debate amongst the fan forums... It’s better than Fong Sai Yuk, but worse than ONCE UPON A TIME IN CHINA. There, I’ve said it.

Trivia: Watch out for a cameo from John Benn, the Mafia boss from WAY OF THE DRAGON.